Once A Villian
by LindsayR
Summary: The good girl and the bad boy.  Nothing good can ever come of them.  Yet she can't seem to stay away.  LaylaLash pairing.


Once a Villian…

By LindsayR

Pairing: Layla/Lash

Summary: The good girl and the bad boy. Nothing good can ever come of them. Yet, she can't seem to stay away.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch.

Author's Note: My first attempt at a Sky High fic. I know that Layla is in the sidekick class, but at the end of the movie the Commander calls them all heroes. So she's a hero in this, even if she's not in the hero class.

She's always been the good girl, the one who follows the rules and doesn't do anything to rock the boat. She even convinced herself that she was in love with Will because it was the way things were supposed to be. That didn't turn out so well. They dated for two months and when they broke up it was mutual, but it left an awkwardness between them that took six months to get past.

And then _he_ came back to school her junior year. She doesn't know what strings his parents pulled, but considering that the rest of Royal Pain's little band of villians were still in prison, she figures that some serious ass kissing and calling in favors was done. No one would have let Lash out of jail otherwise, especially after only serving nine months of a fifteen year sentence.

He looks different than the last time she saw him. His hair is longer, brushing the back of his collar and his eyes are dark, with circles underneath. Haunted is the only word to describe what she sees when she looks at him.

Principal Powers doesn't let him back into the Hero track. She knows that has to sting a bit. He loved those classes. Even she had been able to pick that up about him. But he's not a hero, not anymore, if he ever was.

The first time she bumps into him is in the library and she scatters his books to the ground she hits him so hard. She apologizes but it only brings a smirk to his lips. He says nothing and she finds herself fascinated by the slight twist of his mouth.

The second time she runs into him at the Paper Lantern. She takes a chance and asks him to join her since it's pretty obvious that Will has forgotten…again. She's grateful for the fact that it's Warren's night off. He'd never let her alone if he knew she was sitting with Lash. She's surprised when they end up closing the restaurant. Talking to him is easy once she gets past his defenses.

After that they meet in secret, at least every other day, either to talk or study. She knows it's wrong. She's the good girl and he's…well, not a villian anymore, but not a hero either. But when she's with him she feels like she's where she's supposed to be.

She knows her friends are smart, even if he doesn't think so. Still, Magenta's the only one to figure out what's going on if her sarcastic quips are anything to go by. She almost corners them one time at the mall, but eventually she stops trying when she figures out that they don't want to talk about it. So she runs interference. But soon they're both so adept at avoidance that they don't even have to try and outwit her close-knit group of friends.

Their first kiss is a revelation. They don't mean for it to happen. He surprises her one day after school by taking her to the botanical gardens. When he walks her home that night, she turns to thank him for the surprise only to find that he's standing so close their faces are just a mere breath apart. She can't help but close the last little bit of distance. The explosion of desire is worth it. She presses herself closer, as close as she can, her arms wrapping tight around his neck as his long, slender hands grip her hips and pull her to him. Full contact. Will never kissed her like this and she melts into it, giving herself over to Lash.

Everything changes after that. She finds herself doing things that goody-two shoes Layla never would have considered. She sneaks out at night to meet him. She skips class to steal kisses with him under the bleachers of the 'Save the Citizen' arena. He even gets her to go skinny dipping in the lake by her house. And then her grades start to slip. That's when her friends intervene.

She was stupid to think they wouldn't notice that she and Lash were both missing from class at the same time. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that they were together. They try to warn her, try to get her to see that he's not good for her, that he may be back in school, but he's still not a good guy. She knows this though. It's nothing she hasn't told herself a hundred times before. She just can't seem to stay away. Still, she does stop skipping class and sneaking out every night.

Three months after their first kiss she gives him her virginity. They are in the park sitting under the full white moon, staring out at the lake when he kisses her, laying her back on the lush grass that she wills to grow up around them, hiding them from prying eyes. He goes slow and she strains against him with every touch of his fingers on her, every thrust of his body into her own. It's more than she ever dreamed and she holds nothing back. It's perfect. It's wrong. She knows it, but she can't help it. She's fallen in love with him.

When the end of the year rolls around they go to homecoming together. She loves the look on peoples' faces when she walks in with him, but they are only a brief distraction and soon everyone forgets about them. Magenta shows her support by coming up and talking to them. In the end all of her friends prove themselves and try to accept Lash, or in Warren's case, at least be civil.

She first realizes something's wrong when he disappears halfway through the dance. She can't find him anywhere and neither can any of the others. Worry starts to turn to panic though when, in a repeat of the dance freshman year, the gates slam down, trapping everyone in the gym. Everyone's confused and trying to find a way out when the windows shatter. It's Royal Pain and her crew.

She's in the process of searching for her friends when he steps in front of her, causing her to almost fall. He steadies her, but then releases her arm as if burned. Denial immediately bubbles up inside her when she sees the look in his eyes. He's part of this. Again. The denial is immediately replaced by shame and humiliation. He used her. The whole time they were together wasn't about anything but him playing a part, making it look like he really was trying to reform.

Tears streak down her cheeks but she doesn't try to stop them. She just stares into his eyes, letting him see her pain, her hurt, her anger, and her love. She can't hate him. Maybe that will come one day. She doesn't know. What she does know is that she gave him her heart and even though he used her, she's not going to let him break her. Instead, she turns away, pushes through the throng of people scurrying around trying to escape, and goes to aid her friends. She leaves him behind. She has no choice.

They win of course. The good guys always triumph. It's practically a rule. Royal Pain is gone for good, dead at the hands of Will and Warren, falling off the edge of the school and refusing to let Will save her. The police take the others away. She's forced to watch as he's put in the back of a police car, hands cuffed behind his back. She never takes her eyes from his, even as her hand grazes her stomach, resting there. She sees the realization flash in his eyes along with something she thinks might be regret before she turns away.

Her friends are there for her of course, never condemning her for her choices, but she can see the concern in their actions. She's pregnant. Warren is the only one who is understanding about it. Her parents disown her and she doesn't turn down Warren's offer of a place to crash. His mother is the only one she can truly talk to about the baby. She understands what it's like to love a villian. The others want her to give the baby up for adoption. They don't understand that it's not an option. Despite everything the baby is part of her and Lash. He'll always have a piece of her heart and she can't give away the part of him that's growing inside of her.

She was a good girl once. She always followed the rules and never rocked the boat, until she let him into her life. But she knows, even as her stomach starts to grow with new life, that she will get it back. She'll be the good girl again one day. He may have thrown her off track for a while, but she's a hero and heroes are always good.


End file.
